Publications

Industry News Update - May 28, 2008

Current Association News – May 28, 2008

NRA Comments to FDA on Third-Party Certification Programs for Foods and Feeds

FDA requested comments on using third party programs to help ensure the safety of food and feed. Here is an excerpt of NRA comments which were submitted to the FDA electronic portal:
“NRA believes that FDA should use third-party certification of facilities as one factor in determining its inspection priorities. This would provide a significant incentive to increase participation in third-party certification programs. The FDA should work with industry so effective programs are not disrupted unnecessarily in favor of government programs, and we all should avoid duplication of efforts or layers of bureaucracy that could increase costs without benefit. Also, if we give up control of our program and it loses its education and continuous improvement focus to become an FDA-directed inspection program; then we only have taken a roundabout path to user-fee based inspections. We are not in favor of user fees for FDA inspections or their surrogates.

NRA welcomes further discussions on how the Rendering Code of Practice can help both the rendering industry and FDA can reach their goals”

APPI Rendering Code of Practice Seminar in Dallas—a Success

This members-only function was a big success and the best so far. Participants rated all the topics and speakers very highly. In fact, here’s a quote from one of them: “Thanks for the Dallas meeting. It was probably the single best continuing education program of any kind I have ever attended. My hat is off to you and the crew.” The meeting met our attendance expectations and we certified 40 people as knowledgeable about the Rendering Code of Practice. It was intended help position renderers to respond to the challenges of the day including traceability demands, compliance expectations, product safety and quality issues, recall responsibilities, HACCP, and plant security issues, among others.

Rendering Code of Practice—Momentum Continues

We are very proud of these leading companies—check out the list of certified plants: http://nationalrenderers.org/biosecurity/code/certified_plants. We have 78 plants certified to date!

NRA and Coalition Provide FDA Input on Guidance for Ingredient Suppliers

NRA joined the American Feed Industry Association, National Grain and Feed Association, National Oilseed Processors Association, and Pet Food Institute to provide FDA the industry “current thinking” on ingredient supplier selection. CVM is drafting more comprehensive process control regulations under the Animal Feed Safety System (AFSS) but given the melamine incident last year, we believe FDA should more quickly issue this guidance to the industry while the AFSS program evolves.

REGULATION

USDA/APHIS is seeking public comments on the paperwork and regulatory burdens of its “Permit for Reshipment of Swine from Slaughtering Facilities”

Livestock or poultry may not be removed from the premises of a slaughtering or rendering establishment except under a permit issued by APHIS …

Under the Animal Health Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 8301 et. seq.), the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), U.S. Department of Agriculture, is authorized, among other things, to prevent the interstate spread of livestock diseases and to eradicate such diseases from the United States when feasible. In connection with this mission, APHIS’ Veterinary Services (VS) program conducts animal disease surveillance programs, including diagnostic testing.

The regulations in 9 CFR, Subchapter C, Part 71, “General Provisions,” provide for the collection of blood and tissue samples from livestock (horses, cattle, bison, captive cervids, sheep and goats, swine, and other farmed animals) and poultry at slaughtering or rendering establishments. Persons moving livestock and poultry interstate for slaughter or rendering may only move the animals to slaughtering or rendering establishments that have been listed by the Administrator of APHIS.

Livestock or poultry may not be removed from the premises of a slaughtering or rendering establishment except under a permit issued by APHIS and in accordance with applicable regulations of USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. Swine may be moved from a slaughtering establishment only with a permit that restricts such movement to either a holding facility or another slaughtering establishment and prohibits their return to the farm for feeding or breeding purposes, which could expose other farm animals to diseases that may be carried by animals intended for slaughter. Any person wishing to transport slaughter swine under a permit for reshipment must submit an application to APHIS’ Veterinary Services program for their review and approval. Comments are due by July 22, 2008. The May 23, 2008 Federal Register Notice is posted here: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/E8-11650.htm

MEETINGS

NRA’s Vice President, David Meeker will participate in the following meetings in June:

Kemin Swine Summit
NRA’s message will be how the rendering industry makes high quality safe feed ingredients and how bio-fuels have impacted the supply of animal fats for the animal agriculture market. Kemin hosts an annual Swine Summit one day before the World Pork Expo in Des Moines. The Summit will be Wed, June 4 and the World Pork Expo runs June 5-7.

USDA Forum: “The Unwanted Horse Issue: What Now?”
NRA’s message will be about carcass disposal options and how rendering is a viable alternative and often the best option. Impacts of the feed rule on carcass pick-up will be discussed as well as the benefit of a carcass disposal regulation. The meeting will be June 18, 2008 in the USDA Jefferson Auditorium in Washington, DC.

USDA/ARS Stakeholders Workshop
The 2008 Stakeholders Workshop for ARS National Program 306, Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products, will be held June 10-11, 2008, near Baltimore, MD. This is the ARS research program for fats and oils and rendered proteins. The purpose of the workshop is to seek input in identifying needs of our industry that could be translated into researchable problems that are within the ARS mission and that are relevant to the mission and goals of this National Program. ARS will then use this input to develop an action plan that will chart the direction and focus for research in this program over the next 5-7 years.

AFIA’s Feed Industry Institute

NRA’s message will be how the rendering industry makes high quality safe feed ingredients. This meeting is held every two years, and will take place on June 16-19, 2008 in Chicago. This short-course is geared for feed and feed ingredient professionals interested in expanding their knowledge of the industry. The conference features representatives of all segments of the feed industry addressing timely issues and providing insight to a variety of course material. For more information, contact Jarrod Kersey at jkersey@afia.org or call the American Feed Industry Association office at (703 )524-0810.

OTHER ISSUES

Comprehensive U.S. Agricultural Transportation Study to Begin Soon

With the new farm bill directing a joint USDA-U.S. Department of Transportation study of rural transportation issues, analysts at both Departments are making plans to move quickly on the study. The two agencies are to jointly conduct a study of transportation issues involving the rail, truck, and barge movement of agricultural products, domestically produced renewable fuels, and domestically produced resources for the production of electricity for rural areas. The study is also to analyze the economic development in rural areas, including the development of manufacturing facilities and the vitality and economic development of rural communities. Competition in the transportation system is part of the study, as is the issue of whether transportation capacity is sufficient, efficient, and cost effective in rural areas. USDA and the U.S. Transportation Department are to complete their joint study and submit the study report no later than one year from the date of the enactment of the new farm bill.

Four EU Feed Directives Merge into One

The European Commission (EC) proposes to modernize and simplify legislation on the marketing and use of animal feed. The proposal is intended to replace four existing directives with one regulation that will apply directly in all Member States. The regulation aims to contribute to a reduction of administrative burdens on industry by removing unnecessary labeling requirements.

The key aspects of the proposed regulation are:

  • repeal of the existing requirement to declare the ingredients of compound feed by their percentage weight of inclusion
  • introduction of a clear demarcation between complementary feeds and premixes
  • a new requirement for compound feed labeling to declare the presence of all additives subject to a maximum inclusion rate
  • stricter limits of variation for labeling declarations of analytical ingredients (protein, fiber, moisture, etc.)
  • repeal of the existing requirement for a pre-market assessment of new bioprotein products
  • introduction of new controls on the claims that can be made for feed products
  • removal of the existing derogation for the labeling of feed materials with a moisture content of more than 50%
  • introduction of a formal procedure for the addition of new entries to the list of nutritional purposes for which dietetic feeds may be promoted
  • introduction of a Community Catalogue of feed materials, in place of the existing list of such materials in current legislation, and Codes of Practice for the labeling of feed.

The proposed regulation does not contain provisions on feed containing or produced from genetically modified organisms, controls on the use of feed additives, or measures to control contaminants, which are and will remain the subject of separate EC measures. Member states can amend the proposals before they become definite. A news story is here:
http://www.allaboutfeed.net/home/id102-45616/four_eu_feed_directives_merge_into_one.html

DHS Proposes New ‘No-Match’ Rule

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has released a Supplemental Proposed Rulemaking for the No-Match Rule first issued Aug. 15, 2007. In October, a federal judge blocked that attempt by DHS to require employers to fire workers whose names don’t match their Social Security numbers. The new rule supplement issued in March provides a more detailed analysis of how DHS developed the original No-Match policy and will help responsible employers ensure that they are not employing unauthorized workers. More information can be found here:
http://www.dhs.gov/xnews/releases/pr_1206124972832.shtm

USDA Says Effect of Biofuels on Feed Prices is Low

USDA reported last week the role of bio fuels in the rising feed prices is much smaller than often has been said lately. In an ERS report, factors were considered that contributed to the recent increase in food and commodity prices. Many different causes were considered for the recent rise in food and feed prices. USDA’s chief economist Joe Glauber said the increase in biofuel production has had a relatively small effect. Glauber mentioned other causes to be more important for the global increase in feed prices, emphasizing global economic growth, including:

  • Demand in countries such as India and China where the GDP there has been increasing on the order to 5 to 10% annually.
  • The weather situation including droughts in Australia and problems in Canada, Ukraine, and the European Union.
  • Export restrictions on rice and wheat by many countries
  • Energy costs and the impact on food marketing and transportation costs.
  • Glauber mentioned that estimates show that total global increase in corn-based ethanol production accounts for only about 3% of the recent increase in global food prices.

Story:
http://www.allaboutfeed.net/home/id102-49806/effect_of_biofuels_on_feed_prices_is_low.html

Also, the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors told a Senate hearing last week corn-based ethanol production accounts for only 7.5% of the 37% run-up in U.S. corn prices over the last year; globally, the contribution is about 13%.

Kennedy Illness Derails Several Initiatives

With word Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) is suffering from a malignant brain tumor, the fate of several key legislative initiatives is uncertain. Kennedy, chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee, is known to be a hands-on negotiator on priority legislation, and without his presence several committee priorities are on hold. Of interest to the agriculture, food and health community is Kennedy’s crafting of omnibus FDA reform/food-feed safety legislation. While staff for both Kennedy and ranking member Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY) said its business as usual on the committee, other players in the food/drug safety debate said legislation is pinned to “the health of the chairman.” Kennedy is expected to undergo chemotherapy and radiation treatments, a debilitating set of procedures, and when he might return to the Senate is unknown. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), Senate majority leader, said Kennedy and Enzi may be able to reach accommodation on pending legislation, allowing it to move to the floor. That projection would apply to bills already introduced and in play; food safety reform remains as draft legislation.

U.S. to Ban Slaughter of Downer Cattle

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer on last week announced his intention to ban slaughter of cattle at federally inspected facilities that go down after initial inspection. Under current regulations, a downed cow can still be slaughtered if a USDA inspector reassesses the animal and determines it is still safe for consumption. An example would be an animal that tripped and broke a limb, rather than fell due to illness. The rule became controversial after USDA recalled 143 million pounds of beef in the wake of video that showed downed cattle at Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing Co. seemingly headed to slaughter without re-inspection. Schafer minimized the impact of the decision on slaughter facilities, noting that last year, of the nearly 34 million slaughtered cattle, fewer than 1,000 cattle that were re-inspected were actually approved by the veterinarian for slaughter. The American Meat Institute, which along with the National Meat Association and the National Milk Producers Federation had petitioned USDA to take this action. The Humane Society of the United States, which was responsible for video taping animal abuse at Hallmark/Westland, also praised the move. A story is here:
http://www.meatingplace.com/MembersOnly/webNews/details.aspx?item=20515

New Report Details How Agriculture Is Impacted By Climate Change

Climate change has caused changes in U.S. agricultural production, land and water resources and biodiversity, and will continue to impact farmland, forests and natural ecosystems, a team of USDA-sponsored scientists said Tuesday. In a teleconference with reporters, the team released a report that assesses the findings of more than 1,000 peer-reviewed research publications on climate change, finding that changes have been underway for decades, including higher temperatures, precipitation pattern shifts and higher carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. USDA served as the lead agency for the report, one of several to be issue by the federal Climate Change Science Program, a project that integrates the federal research efforts of 13 agencies on climate and global change. Bill Hohenstein, director of the Global Change Program Exchange in the office of USDA chief economist Joe Glauber, said the report is one of the most extensive examinations of climate impacts on U.S. ecosystems, but makes no recommendations to policy makers and suggests no measures for adapting to the changes. The report can be found here:
http://www.usda.gov/oce/global_change/sap_2007_FinalReport.htm

USDA Opens 24 Million Acres to Livestock Feed Use

USDA announced it has authorized 24 million acres currently under the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) to be available for hay and forage to feed livestock this summer to help producers cope with high feed prices and possible grain shortages. This program will make an estimated 18 million tons of forage, worth $1.2 billion, available. Eligible land may not be hayed or grazed until after the end of the primary wildlife nesting season, which varies across the country but generally ends in late July or early August. All forage use must be completed by Nov. 10. The program does not allow growers an early out from their CRP contracts to grow grain on that land.

Dead Barbecue Pig Rises and Walks Off

A group of bank employees from the Solomon Islands had a strange surprise during their recent annual barbecue. The pig that was lying waiting to be roasted suddenly stood and walked off to look for food, a newspaper Agrarisch Dagblad reported. Everyone presumed that the animal had already been slaughtered. The animal had been cut in the abdomen and neck but apparently not with deadly effect. Most of the eaters refused to touch the pig. The group thought that the pig had supernatural powers. “The pig woke from the dead” explained a bank employee, “therefore, we may not eat it.” The story is here:
http://www.pigprogress.net/home/id1602-53705/dead_barbecue_pig_rises_and_walks_off.html